NFL Week 2: Stack Em Up DraftKings Plays (Premium)

Week 2 could be high-scoring as two games have an over/under greater than 53 points and there are 10 teams that are expected to score at least 25 points. Within those games, there are several stacks that are in favorable matchups and should be considered as viable options this week. Let’s not waste any more time and jump right into these stacks.

For those who are not familiar with what stacking means, let’s define what we are calling a stack.

Stacking is pairing multiple players from one team. In this instance I will be referring to a quarterback and one of his receivers, tight ends, or running backs.

Top Stacks

Green Bay Packers

Game Over/Under: 53.5

Green Bay Implied Points: 25.25

Aaron Rodgers $7,400 is surprisingly not the most expensive quarterback on the slate, despite the favorable matchup. Atlanta yielded the third most (272.9) passing yards and fourth most (4.0) passing touchdowns per game last season. Rodgers has a good history against the Falcons, throwing for 1,626 yards and 13 touchdowns in five career games against them, while only throwing one pick. He also has a rushing touchdown to add to that impressive resume. Last year, these two teams met and the game finished 33-32 Falcons, but in that contest, Rodgers finished the day with 246 passing yards and four touchdowns, this was the only game where he did not top 300 passing yards against them. He will be popular, and rightfully so. Vegas has this as the second highest over/under and just a three point spread so I expect to see some fireworks here.

There are many ways to stack this Packers offense and Jordy Nelson $7,900 is one of those options. He started off the season right where he left off last year, catching 7-of-8 targets for 79 yards and a touchdown. The one concern is that he should see some Desmond Trufant in this matchup which limits his upside, however, Trufant is not one to shadow, so if they move Nelson around he could see less of him which makes him far more appealing. That being said, the volume is there for Nelson, he played in 92 percent of the snaps last week, and remains the go-to receiver on this offense and finds himself in a positive game script.

I really like what I saw out of Randall Cobb $5,900 in Week 1, catching 9-of-13 targets for 85 yards and scoring 17.5 DK points. Now that he is fully healthy, I expect his role to be far more solidified than what it was last season. He played in 77 percent of the Packers snaps and led all receivers for Green Bay in targets. While 13 targets may not occur again, it was refreshing to see that Rodgers was focusing on him often at the start of the season. I think he is a fine play in both tournaments and cash at this price, and when taking the expected game flow into consideration, Cobb should have a busy Sunday.

Davante Adams $5,600 is my least favorite of the stacking options for the Packers, however, he does have some things going for him. First, he will likely be the least owned of the group. Secondly, he did play in 81 percent of the Packers snaps, which was the second highest amongst receivers. Lastly, he did receive seven targets, which was one less than Jordy Nelson. Adams is only a tournament option for me as he possesses that high-upside, but low-floor appeal. If you are trying to differentiate your Packers stack, he will be your best bet. Just keep in mind, you are increasing your variance with him.

Martellus Bennett $3,900 had his regular season Packers debut last week and it was a decent performance. He was targeted six times, catching three passes for 43 yards and played in 81 percent of Green Bay’s snaps. Granted, these are not eye-popping numbers, but I like the target count, as well as the amount of plays he was on the field for. This Falcons defense struggled against tight ends last season, making Bennett an appealing option in all formats this week.

The last player comes with a bit of chalk dust as I am expecting him to be popular and rightfully so. Ty Montgomery $5,800 is just too cheap and too involved in this offense to be ignored. He played in 90 percent of the snaps, received 19 carries, and was targeted four times. He finished with 93 total yards and a touchdown against the Seahawks in the season opener. This matchup is far more appealing and looks like a straight up smash spot for Montgomery. There are times where eating chalk makes sense and this is one of those times.

My favorite option: Rodgers/Cobb

Atlanta Falcons

Game Over/Under: 53.5

Implied Points: 28.25

Matt Ryan $7,500 gets a price bump this week and finds himself in the second highest implied total of the week. He faces off against the Packers, a team he has fared well against in their last two meetings. Ryan has averaged over 300 passing yards and thrown seven touchdowns with one interception in the last two games against Green Bay. In each of these games, both teams have topped 30 points. The Packers secondary allowed the most passing yards (278.2) and the second most (2.1) touchdowns per game to opposing quarterbacks last season. I am not a fan of Ryan in real life, but in fantasy and this week, I am a big fan. All the boxes check off and even at what I expect to be a relatively high ownership spot, he makes total sense.

Julio Jones $9,200 disappointed last week, but that is no reason to avoid him this week. He is expected to see a lot of Damarious Randall which is a complete mismatch in Jones’ favor. Jones only saw five targets in Week 1, but did come down with four of them for 66 yards, averaging a nice 16.5 yards per reception. I can go on and on about how much upside Jones brings to the table and how good this guy is, but when he is in a matchup as good as this one and has a 100 percent advantage rating against his projected primary defender according to Pro Football Focus, it only makes sense to roster him. I am going back to the well with Jones and have no concerns about it.

Mohamed Sanu $4,500 is also a viable option and while I do not like to use three-man stacks often, this would be one of the times I would consider doing so. In Week 1, he was peppered with nine targets, catching six of them for 47 yards. In addition to leading the team in targets, he played in 81 percent of the snaps, which tied Julio Jones for most amongst receivers. Much like Jones, Sanu has a favorable matchup, with a 78 percent advantage rating over Quinten Rollins who is expected to be his primary defender. We saw some big games from Sanu last year and one of them came against the Packers where he caught 9-of-10 targets for 84 yards and a touchdown.

My favorite option: Ryan/Jones

New England Patriots

Game Over/Under: 55.5Implied Points: 31.25

Tom Brady $7,900 is looking to bounce back after a below average performance in Week 1 and gets the perfect matchup to do so. The Saints defense got torched in their season opener by Sam Bradford as he threw for 346 yards and three touchdowns against them. Last season the Saints yielded the second most passing yards (273.8) and 1.7 passing touchdowns per game. This is a matchup that Brady should take complete advantage of and a perfect spot to get this passing game on track. The Patriots have the highest implied team total this week which means that we should see some touchdowns scored. It is tough to believe that he will struggle in back-to-back games, so a solid outing is expected.

Brandin Cooks $8,200 received seven targets in his Patriots regular season debut, catching three of them for 88 yards. He was tied for the most targets on offense and played in 82 percent of the snaps. Cooks faces his former team in what is a favorable matchup. He currently has a 44 percent advantage rating over Marshon Lattimore who is expected to be his primary defender, per Pro Football Focus. Cooks finished with an aDot of 20.3 in Week 1 and 29.3 yards per reception. He offers big play upside and considering the volume of targets, also a nice floor. I would not be surprised if Bill Belichick unleashed Cooks on his former team just because. After all, it is a thing he would do.

You cannot talk about a Patriots stack and not mention Rob Gronkowski $6,900. He played in 90 percent of New England’s snaps in Week 1 and received six targets, two of which were in the red zone. This is also a favorable matchup for Gronk as the Saints struggled against tight ends last season and allowed Kyle Rudolph to score against them in Week 1. The only thing that I do not like about Gronk is his price and how rostering him messes up my roster construction this week. That being said, the upside he offers cannot be denied and if he was going to have a multiple touchdown game, what better matchup than this one.

My Favorite Option: Brady/Cooks

Contrarian Stack

Oakland Raiders

Game Over/Under: 43.5

Raiders Implied Points: 28.5

When taking into account how popular I expect the Saints/Patriots and Packers/Falcons games are going to be this week, I could see Derek Carr $7,200 and the Raiders go a tad overlooked and that could be a mistake. The Jets defense is bad, there is just no way around it. Their secondary came into the season ranked 28th by Pro Football Focus and in Week 1, Tyrod Taylor threw two touchdowns against them. Carr attempted 32 passes in Week one, completing 22 of them for 262 yards and two touchdowns. This is a good matchup for him to duplicate those numbers and even do better. He also has the upside that some of the other elite quarterbacks have and I expect to be far less owned. In tournaments I expect to have a decent amount of exposure to him and plan on being overweight in comparison to the field.

Amari Cooper $8,100 caught five passes for 62 yards and a touchdown in the season opener, but was peppered with 13 targets. In addition, he led the team in red zone targets with four, which was good to see as that has been his only issue in his young career. He has a 31 percent advantage rating over Justin Burris who is expected to be his primary defender according to Pro Football Focus. Cooper offers both a high floor and ceiling making him a viable option in all formats. All the boxes check off with him this week, making him one of my favorite receivers on the board.

Michael Crabtree $7,100 is always an option when considering a Raiders stack. He too had a solid Week 1, catching 7-of-8 targets for 86 yards. He was not targeted in the red zone which was surprising to see, but that could certainly change this week. While he offers a steady floor, his upside is not quite like the one that Cooper has. That being said, this is still a very appealing matchup for him and he should receive plenty of targets.